What Is Missing from National Economic Recovery Plans? COVID-19 and the Informal Economy
- Authors: Mhlana, Siviwe , Moussié, Rachel , Roever, Sally , Rogan, Michael
- Date: 2024
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/478139 , vital:78158 , ISBN 9780198887041 , 10.1093/oso/9780198887041.001.0001
- Description: At the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic in the first half of 2020, there was nearuniversal acknowledgement that employment losses, globally, would be borne disproportionately by vulnerable workers, in general, and informal workers, in particular (ILO 2020a). Of the world’s 2.2 billion informal workers, it was estimated that 1.6 billion would be among the most severely affected by job losses and reduced working hours (ILO 2020b). The result of this impact has been the reversal of decades of progress in human development. For example, the number of people living in extreme poverty in emerging markets and developing economies was expected to increase by 100 million by the end of 2021 (World Bank 2021a). Similarly, the gendered burden of job losses has threatened progress towards gender equality, as evidenced by the highly uneven recovery of employment between women and men throughout 2021 (ILO 2021a). Country-level data on job losses provides support for the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) initial projections about the vulnerability of informal workers to the global ‘pandemic recession’. Most informal workers in the world are located in low-and middle-income countries and are in self-employment. Data from ILOSTAT shows that working hours in lower-income countries in 2021 were about 7 per cent below their pre-COVID (2019) levels, while the corresponding decrease was only about 4 per cent in high-income countries (ILO 2021c). Data from Peru in 2020 suggests that the difference in the decrease in labour income between employees and the self employed (who are largely in the informal sector) was 21 percentage points (ILO 2021b; see also Chen and Vanek, Chapter 2 in thisvolume).
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- Date Issued: 2024
Informal employment: what is missing from national economic recovery plans?
- Authors: Mhlana, Siviwe , Moussié, Rachel , Roever, Sally , Rogan, Michael
- Date: 2023
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , report
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/477952 , vital:78139 , ISBN , https://hdl.handle.net/10419/283788
- Description: Throughout 2021, fiscal stimulus packages were introduced to jump-start the COVID-19 'post-pandemic' economic recovery process. While calls for economic recovery packages that promise to 'build back better' have come from many directions, the under-allocation of recovery resources directed at workers in the informal economy threatens the recovery of livelihoods for the majority of the world's workforce. This paper analyses the economic recovery approaches of two low-income (Bangladesh and Kenya) and two middle-income (South Africa and Thailand) countries. The paper assesses the economic recovery responses in light of what is known about the impact of the crisis on informal workers globally, and the structure of informal employment in each country. The paper assesses national recovery packages with particular attention to the largest segments of informal employment and those where women are over-represented. The paper concludes with a reflection on what more needs to be done to ensure that national level economic recovery packages can support the livelihoods of the majority of workers in emerging and developing countries.
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- Date Issued: 2023
COVID-19 and informal work in 11 cities: recovery pathways amidst continued crisis
- Authors: Alfers, Laura C , Braham, Christy , Chen, Martha A , Grapsa, Erofili , Harvey, Jenna , Ismail, Ghida , Ogando, Ana C , Reed, Sarah O , Roever, Sally , Rogan, Michael , Sinha, Shalini , Skinner, Caroline , Valdivia, Marcela
- Date: 2022
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/473850 , vital:77687 , https://www.wiego.org/publications/covid-19-and-informal-work-11-cities-recovery-pathways-amidst-continued-crisis
- Description: The majority of the global workforce–61%–is informal and has been disproportionately impacted by measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and by the accompanying economic down-turn. The focus on aggregate job and livelihood losses masks the multiple drivers behind these losses that are leaving labour mar-kets in general, but particularly in developing countries, without a viable path to recovery. The global informal workforce is diverse, and understanding experiences of workers in different contexts and sectors is required to design effective recovery policies. This Working Paper reflects the findings from the longitudinal study of nearly 2,000 informal workers in 11 cities around the world. Sur-veys and in-depth interviews were conducted with domestic workers, home-based workers, street vendors and market traders, and waste pickers in mid-2020 and then again in mid-2021. The findings reveal the differentiated pathways of impact and thus re-covery for different groups of informal workers approximately a year and a half into the pandemic. The study shows that the eco-nomic fallout of the COVID-19 crisis remains deep and persistent for workers at the base of the economy. Key findings include: Earnings for informal workers interviewed are still far below their pre-pandemic levels. Most respondents have not fully recovered their ability to work. By mid-2021, the typical worker was only earning 64% of her/his pre-COVID-19 earnings. In addition, the average number of days worked per week was only four in mid-2021, still considerably lower than the 5.5-day average in the pre-pandemic period.
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- Date Issued: 2022
COVID-19 and informal work: Evidence from 11 cities
- Authors: Chen, Martha A , Grapsa, Erofili , Ismail, Ghida , Rogan, Michael , Valdivia, Marcela , Alfers, Laura C , Harvey, Jenna , Ogando, Ana C , Reed, Sarah O , Roever, Sally
- Date: 2022
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/473839 , vital:77686 , https://doi.org/10.1111/ilr.12221
- Description: This article presents the findings for 11 cities across five geographical regions from a study led by Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing and Organizing, investigating the impacts of the COVID-19 crisis on different groups of informal workers and their households. Detailing impacts on work and income, food and hunger, care and other household responsibilities, and on the coping strategies of informal worker households, the article also compares the roles of government and informal worker organizations in providing relief and other support. Based on worker demands, the authors present guiding principles for a better deal for informal workers going forward.
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- Date Issued: 2022
COVID-19 et travail informel: les enseignements d'une étude sur la situation dans onze grandes villes
- Authors: Chen, Martha A , Grapsa, Erofili , Ismail, Ghida , Rogan, Michael , Valdivia, Marcela , Alfers, Laura C , Harvey, Jenna , Ogando, Ana C , Reed, Sarah O , Roever, Sally
- Date: 2022
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: French
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/473861 , vital:77688 , https://doi.org/10.1111/ilrf.12230
- Description: Les auteurs présentent les conclusions d'une étude dirigée par le réseau Femmes dans l'emploi informel: globalisation et organisation (WIEGO) sur les effets de la crise du COVID‐19 sur les travailleurs informels. L'analyse porte sur quatre professions et onze grandes villes de cinq régions. Il y est question du travail et des revenus, de l'accès à l'alimentation et de la faim, des responsabilités familiales et domestiques, ainsi que des stratégies d'adaptation des ménages. Les auteurs évoquent également les mesures de soutien proposées par les gouvernements et les organisations de travailleurs informels. Enfin, ils énoncent une série de principes devant guider l'action en faveur de ce groupe.
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- Date Issued: 2022
COVID-19 y trabajo informal: evidencia de once ciudades
- Authors: Chen, Martha A , Grapsa, Erofili , Ismail, Ghida , Rogan, Michael , Valdivia, Marcela , Alfers, Laura C , Harvey, Jenna , Ogando, Ana C , Reed, Sarah O , Roever, Sally
- Date: 2022
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: French
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/473872 , vital:77689 , https://doi.org/10.1111/ilrs.12231
- Description: Se presentan las conclusiones de un estudio dirigido por la red Mujeres en Empleo Informal: Globalizando y Organizando (WIEGO), en el que se investigan las repercusiones de la crisis de la COVID‐19 en diferentes grupos de personas trabajadoras informales y en sus hogares en términos de empleo, ingresos, alimentación y hambre, cuidado y otras responsabilidades domésticas, así como las estrategias de afrontamiento de estas personas. Se comparan los roles de los gobiernos y de las organizaciones de personas trabajadoras informales en la prestación de diversas ayudas. Basándose en las reivindicaciones de estas personas, se plantean principios rectores para mejorar su situación en el futuro.
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- Date Issued: 2022
COVID-19 and informal work: Distinct pathways of impact and recovery in 11 cities around the world
- Authors: Chen, Martha A , Grapsa, Erofili , Ismail, Ghida , Rogan, Michael , Valdivia, Marcela , Alfers, Laura C , Harvey, Jenna , Ogando, Ana C , Reed, Sarah O , Roever, Sally
- Date: 2021
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/473828 , vital:77685 , https://www.wiego.org/publications/covid-19-and-informal-work-distinct-pathways-impact-and-recovery-11-cities-around
- Description: This paper presents findings from a study on the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on informal workers in 11 cities across 5 regions of the world (Asia, Africa, Latin America, North America and East-ern Europe). A unique feature of the study is that it examines the degree–and pathways–of impact on different sectors of informal workers and, within sectors, by key variables (status in employ-ment, place of work, goods/services provided, and gender). Also, the study provides insights from informal workers in their own words. The paper concludes with common demands for recovery by local organizations of informal workers and a call for a Better New Deal for informal workers. The study methods included a survey questionnaire for informal workers and in-depth interviews with informal worker leaders and organizers as well as repre-sentatives of government, civil society and academia. The survey was conducted by mobile phone and collected information on the ability to work, working hours, earnings and sector-specific con-straints to livelihoods at three points in time: mid-2020 (June–July) when the survey was carried out and two recall periods–April 2020 (period of peak lockdowns or restrictions in all study cities) and February 2020 (pre-COVID-19 reference period). The survey also collected information on health and safety, food security and hunger, care and other household responsibilities, relief measures and household coping strategies.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021
Gender and informal livelihoods: Coping strategies and perceptions of waste pickers in Sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America
- Authors: Ogando, Ana C , Roever, Sally , Rogan, Michael
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/474156 , vital:77696 , https://doi.org/10.1108/IJSSP-06-2016-0077
- Description: This paper explores the perceptions and experiences of women and men who work as informal waste collectors in four different cities. The purpose of this paper is to map out how and to what extent occupational, political-legal, economic and social dynamics are experienced differently by gender in a highly vulnerable segment of the urban informal economy, and explore gender differences in these workers’ coping strategies and the levels of action they develop to protect their livelihoods.
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- Date Issued: 2017
Informal employment in the global south Globalization, production relations, and “precarity”
- Authors: Rogan, Michael , Roever, Sally , Chen, Martha A , Carré, Françoise
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , book chapter
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/477942 , vital:78138 , ISBN 978-1-78743-287-1 , https://doi.org/10.1108/S0277-283320170000031010
- Description: In this chapter, we aim to illustrate some of the forms taken by informal employment in the global south and how these can best be understood by adopting a wider analytical lens than has been applied in much of the precarious employment literature. We draw on the findings of a recent study of the working conditions of urban informal workers from 10 cities in the global south. The study consisted of focus groups (15 in each city) conducted through the framework of a participatory informal economy appraisal as well as a survey of 1,957 home-based workers, street vendors, and waste pickers. Our findings illustrate a number of ways in which these three groups of informal workers are embedded within the formal economy. While they are not engaged in wage employment, they play subordinate roles to both formal sector firms within global production networks and unequal production relations and to the state through, inter alia, constrained access to public spaces and regulation. In order to interpret these findings, we apply “relational” lens to demonstrate how risks and costs are transferred to workers who constitute the “real economy” in much of the global south. Given the often disguised connections between informal employment and the formal economy, this approach also provides a bridge to understanding precarious working conditions and the effects of globalization outside of the industrialized north.
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- Date Issued: 2017